Family Forum / Parenting / Adoption / March 2006

http://www.azstarnet.com/metro/121393

Single mothers see no need for adoption bill
Married couples would get preference under measure
By Jane Erikson
ARIZONA DAILY STAR

KariAnn Nelson is a single, stay-at-home mom of four girls - one her
own, two she adopted and one foster child - who, some lawmakers
think, would be better off if there were a dad in the house.

Nelson disagrees.

"I don't know a lot of couples who can devote the time and attention to
their kids that I can," says Nelson, mother of Kaiti, who will turn 14
on Tuesday; adoptive mother of Kristina and Kara, both 5; and foster
mother to a girl nicknamed Tita who will be 6 months old on Saturday.

"I don't have a husband to deal with," says Nelson, 47, of Oro Valley.
"I can devote myself around the clock to these kids, which I've done
ever since they've been here."

And besides, Nelson says: "A two-parent family is not always perfect."

Maybe not, says House Majority Leader Steve Tully, but he wants state
law to give married couples preference when it comes to adopting
children.

Tully's bill has cleared the House and is moving toward a final vote in
the Senate. Some groups like the idea of a state law affirming the
benefits of mom-and-dad families. But others say the law would stand in
the way of loving adults willing to provide good homes to the thousands
of Arizona children awaiting adoption.

Still others are convinced the bill discriminates against same-sex
couples, single adults and others.

Tully, a Phoenix Republican, says his bill doesn't discriminate against
anyone.
"It doesn't say homosexuals can't adopt. It doesn't say singles can't
adopt," Tully said Wednesday. "It's just a matter of policy that to the
extent there are choices, we're going to opt for a married situation. I
think it's pretty hard to argue that, but people will."

The conservative Center for Arizona Policy is strongly in favor of
Tully's adoption bill, said Peter Gentala, the group's general counsel.

"We think this is just terrific public policy," Gentala said. "It's
another way for Arizona to recognize that moms and dads are important
for kids and to do what it can to make that happen with regard to
adoption."

"One reason we are so in favor of this bill is that it's not a rigid
framework," Gentala said. "It recognizes that some children would be
better off with a single parent for one reason or another."

Tully's House Bill 2696 says the state's Child Protective Services -
and the adoption agencies it contracts with - can consider placing a
child with a single adult "only if a qualified married couple has not
submitted an application."

The bill would allow exceptions, for example, when the single adult is
a relative with a strong relationship with the child or "the child's
best interests require the adoption by the single person." A single mom
might be the best choice for a teen-age girl who had been molested,
adoption experts agree.

The Department of Economic Security, which oversees Child Protective
Services, has not taken a position on the bill.

"But we have concerns about the unintended consequences of the bill,
how it could have a chilling effect on single individuals who would not
even try to adopt," said Liz Barker Alvarez, spokeswoman for the DES.
"And that would mean many children will be in the system longer."

Arizona's Children Association, the state's largest child-welfare
agency, has the same concern.

"The system needs to look at things through the eyes of a child," said
Fred Chaffee of Tucson, who heads the association. "The point is, we
need to do everything we can to eliminate barriers to moving these kids
into permanent homes. If there were more adoptive parents than there
are kids needing homes, that would be one thing. But there aren't."
Arizona has nearly 10,000 children in foster care, with about 2,200 of
them eligible for adoption, said Barker Alvarez.

Yvonne Flores of Tucson has been raising her 9-year-old grandson, Kyle,
for the last six years, since her daughter decided she could no longer
cope with his mild retardation and other health problems.

Flores, a divorced teacher who is Kyle's legal guardian, would like to
formally adopt him, but wants that to be a decision shared by his birth
mother. Because she is Kyle's grandmother, and because they have a good
relationship, Tully's bill would waive the married-couples-first
requirement.

But it could still be a barrier between Kyle and his grandmother, said
Beth Rosenberg of the Phoenix-based Children's Action Alliance, a
socially liberal organization.
The adoption process involves a lengthy eligibility review of
applicants, followed by court certification that makes them eligible to
adopt, then placing a child in a home that is deemed a good match.

Tully's bill would mean Flores would wait longer to get through the
certification process, because the state would be using its limited
staff and dollars to review married couples first, Rosenberg said.

That prospect "makes me sad," Flores said. "Just because you're a
married couple does not mean you can provide a healthy environment for
the child. I have age and experience behind me. If you are a single
parent, you can have just as good an environment for the child, if not
better."

Lawmakers in Ohio and Utah are moving toward banning adoption by
same-sex couples, and Tucson advocates for gays and lesbians are
worried that Tully's bill is a step in that direction.
"I would be a little concerned that this is just their first foray into
more restrictive and more repugnant legislation," said Kent Burbank,
director of Wingspan, Tucson's lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender
community center.

Peter Lake, Wingspan's financial director, said he and his partner are
taking parenting classes and hope to adopt a child. Tully's bill is
"discriminatory against people who are not married, whether they are
straight or gay," Lake said.

"There is already an unwritten preference given to married couples and
this just adds another piece of legislation to that and it only hurts
the children," he said.